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The South Korean tech giant's roughly 33,000 square foot (3,000
square meter) store in the southern tech hub of Bengaluru will
help it extend its lead in India over global rival Apple Inc,
which has yet to open any flagship stores in the country.
India, which boasts more than a billion wireless connections,
presents a lucrative opportunity for smartphone makers to expand
beyond China and the United States where growth has slowed.
Samsung opened the world's biggest smartphone plant outside
Indian capital New Delhi just two months ago.
"India is an extremely important market," Mohandeep Singh,
senior vice-president, mobile business at Samsung India told
Reuters, adding that the company plans to open more such stores
in some of India's top 10 cities.
"These stores ... will really help us further consolidate our
share as we move forward," Singh said.
The new store will feature Samsung mobile devices but also
showcase its consumer electronics products and latest
innovations. It will also house a service center for phones.
Samsung has spent "huge" money to lease out the property, Singh
said, declining to give specifics.
Samsung, which runs 2,100 stores in India through franchise
partners, is facing off against a host of Chinese brands led by
Xiaomi Corp.
It has pulled pages from their playbooks to become savvier with
online marketing -- launching devices aimed at millennials,
seeking to reinvent itself as a 'younger brand' and finding a
new love for cricket with a sponsorship deal.
Samsung also wants to develop the center as a meeting point for
startups and venture capitalists, Singh added.
Apple sells its devices in India through reseller stores and
online marketplaces and has a meager market share of one
percent.
(Reporting by Sankalp Phartiyal; Editing by Kim Coghill)
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